Insanity for the Masses, Part Deux
by Cerby
Summary: Continuing off Insanity FTM, Pt. Un. Emily and Kouki work on infiltrating the inside of the Terra Geist base, and both gripe about whimpy Ligers. Whine and moan fest, here we come...


A/N: The continuation of Insanity pt. 1. Otherwise known as I like writing the interactions between Emily and Kouki. That and this mission was a pain in the ass. Still defying canon knowledge, btw. -runs-

* * *

"I don't wanna do this." 

"Too bad. You're doing it."

"I said, _I don't wanna-_"

"Well SUCK IT UP, PANSY BOY! WE'RE DOING THIS!"

The inside of the Liger Zero EM's cockpit resonated from the noise of a very angry female on the other end of the radio transmission, rattling the controls and pilot. Gulping, Kouki tried to convince his heart to go back to its proper place, but it seemed to like being jammed in his throat next to his Adam's apple. With good reason.

Standing next to the Zero was a Blade Liger, and it didn't look any happier than Kouki did. The brown Zoid's tail swished nervously back and forth as pale beige claws kneaded the rocky ground, waiting for a signal from its pilot to start the mission. Which wouldn't be long in coming now, considering how riled up she was.

Flicking some switches, Emily did a last-minute system check of the Liger's systems, then placed her hands upon the controls. "Let's go, Minty," she said, easing forward on the throttle. The Liger chirred uneasily as it began to walk forward, tail lashing behind it.  
Minty. That was his name. Despite the fact that Lady now had shiny new parts, Emily was tired of nearly dying in the same violent Konig Wolf over 'n over again. So, after dragging Zan into a closet and nearly beating the ever-living crap out of him, she convinced him to…um… _give_ her the Blade Liger. After all, it was just sitting there doing nothing. Minty had a pale blue underbody, dark brown to almost black armor, and lime green stripes on the fairing and finny bits. Hence his name, Minty. Toothpaste-colored Liger. So far, he was showing himself to be a bit of a coward. It was definitely a change from Lady, though.

"C'mon slacker. No lagging behind," Emily snapped at the Liger Zero as the Blade Liger walked by, finned tail reached out to slap the red feline on the cheek. The Zero ducked and Kouki grumbled, urging his Zoid to follow along behind the other pointed cat. Sheesh, he was being stuck with the same overly-violent partner again… Why couldn't somebody else have come? Like, say, Renier for instance. He could use a lesson in humility…

_Renier could use a lesson in everything. Except maybe snoring._

"EEEEYAUGH!" Kouki shrieked, nearly jumping out of his seat. If not for the seatbelts that were restraining him, the redhead might have gone right through the canopy ceiling.

"Kouki! What's the matter with you now?" Emily grumbled, the Blade Liger's head turning back to look. The Zero was stationary, and looking quite confused at the commotion going on in its head.

"I-i-i-i-i-it's TALKING AGAIN!" The Imperial pilot squealed, sounding very unmanly. Emily nearly facefaulted right into her control panel as Minty and the Zero sweatdropped. "And it's CREEPING ME OUT! DO SOMETHING!"

"What do you WANT me to do, Kouki?" The female pilot snapped, now thoroughly irritated. "Zoids talking are NOTHING NEW. Now SHUT UP. The enemy'll hear us." Minty gave a sniff and began to trot off, tail waving in the air. Kouki gave his HUD screen a very cautious look, before taking up the controls and urging his Zoid forward.

"So, um… Do all Zoids talk to you?" He asked once the Liger Zero was up next to the Bladey. Emily sighed, taking one hand off the controls to rub her temples.

"That depends. Some are pretty chatty and others are like rocks, you can't get a thing out of them. Minty here is a good example of a rock…"

I resent that.

"C'mon pal, you know I'm kidding."

"But _why_ do they talk?" Kouki pressed, curious. If he was going to have giant mecha beasts of doom talking to him, he was at least going to have a reason for it. Or else he was convinced he'd go nuts.

"Dunno, really. Could be some people are just more in-tune with 'em than others…" Emily mused, glancing down to check the radar. "Caused by a higher deposit of Zoidian blood. Or things just click. There's no _real_ reason for it, if they talk then they talk, or if they don't then they don't. Whatever the cause, just be grateful."

"Grateful?" Kouki asked, still confused. "I don't get any of this…"

_When in doubt, just run with it._

This time, Kouki had the presence of mind _not_ to scream.

Ew, this looks nasty.

"How the crap did they get one of THOSE in here?!"

The thing in question was a Salamander patrolling the skies above, casting a dark shadow on the ground. Pressed close to the rocks on either side of the bottom of the gorge, the two Ligers stared up at the flying reptilian Zoid and proverbially gulped. Seeing as neither possessed an esophagus.

"So, um, what's the plan?" Kouki asked, somewhat hopeful. Last time the two had been partnered, their enemies were a Dark Spiner and troops of Rev Raptors. This time, HelCats and the Salamander. Emily was good with strategizing; her Konig had taken down the Spiner with help…and luck. But Lady wasn't here anymore…

"Plan? I dunno. I'm guessing since you've got like, nothing, you run along the edge of the wall and find the entrance while I cover you. 'kay?"

"Are you sure that'll work?"

"I detect nervousness. Chill out ya pansy, you'll be fine. Just stick to the wall and if you see anything that moves, run like crap. Oh, and shoot," Emily advised, shifting the controls forward. The Blade Liger moved out into the center of the gorge and roared at the sky, back blade guns flipping forward to let loose a stream of golden pulse lasers at the Salamander. Blissfully unaware for about thirty seconds, the Pteranadon Zoid suddenly squawked as ten shots splattered against its belly, and then veered away into a dive at the ground.

"Run, Kouki!"

The Liger Zero needed no urging, ion boosters springing to life as the feline dashed along the wall down the canyon. Behind it, the Salamander made a low swooping pass at Mach 1 over the Blade Liger, throwing a sonicboom into the rock walls.

Minty hunkered down against the ground, beige claws digging into the earth as the back boosters popped up and flared with white flames, using their force to counteract the wind pressure of the boom. The second the Liger's equilibrium was firmly back to normal; the Zoid took off up the canyon, boosters jet propelling it along the rocky ground. Above, the Salamander screeched and turned to follow, seemingly making ready for another sonicboom.

The Liger Zero ran through the gorge like a scared alley cat, tail up and all finny bits fluffed out and bristling. Ideally, it was going for intimidation to scare the Helcats away, providing the Helcats agreed to be scared. That didn't seem to be the case when a pair of beam shots flew from the right, impacting the ground inches away from the Liger's claws.

_Yeek! _

"Crap, enemies!" Kouki growled, quickly pushing his Zoid forward again. It wouldn't do to stand still, or else any other Cats in the vicinity would be mobbing the Liger like a pack of gangsters. And HelCat huddles…were really hard to get away from. Really hard. The Liger's tail cannon arched over its back like a scorpion, looking for signs of anything to shoot at. A small dust cloud down below caught both Zoid and pilot's attention, and then the tail cannon started to rain down fire in a blistering storm of lasers.

"Here it comes again…"

The Blade Liger wheeled around on a front paw, back guns transferring into machinegun mode. The Salamander shrieked overhead, taking a few more pulse lasers in the chest before the Zoid opened fire with its own guns, then lancing past overhead in another sonicboom. Minty dug in his claws and stood his ground, mane fins opening up to activate the pink energy shield. The countless lasers and bullets splattered against it, causing the Liger to groan and the shield to flicker.

"Man, that thing's packin' some really heavy artillery," Emily muttered, switching off the shield as the Salamander swept past and down the gorge behind them. "I still wonder where the Terra Geist picked it up…"

Probably with the help of some inside spies in the Republic. Not too long ago, I heard a rumor that a transport holding a Salamander was hijacked…

"And you couldn't have told me this earlier, Minty?!"

Sorry. Slipped my mind.

"I'll bet, you lazy ol' Liger…"

Roughly thirty seconds passed in meditative silence, during which Emily pondered why it was so quiet. The answer became painfully clear soon enough.

"Ack, the Sally's moved on down the canyon! Move Minty move!"

The Liger roared in alarm as it spun around and bolted down through the gorge, back boosters blazing white streaks through the darkness.

_Go away, pesky little things! Scram!_

"Yeah, what he said!"

The tail cannon continued to pump ammo out at the HelCats circling the Liger, while the errant inviso-kity that dared to come to close was swatted with the glowing golden power of a Strike Laser Claw. Try as it did, the Liger Zero EM had been drawn into the pack of Cats, and now was pinned up against the canyon wall. To make things worse-

"_SCREEEEEEEEEEEEYAAAAAAAAAR!"_

-the Salamander had just flown in overhead. Angst.

"Dammit! Where'd that come from?" Kouki cursed, thumping his fist on the control panel. "I thought Emily said she'd take care of that!"

"I did, and it got past me, okay? What the heck was I supposed to do anyway? Freakin' thing is in the air!"

The Blade Liger blew past in a burst of pressurized flames, pink shield ramming into and flattening two HelCats as the big brown Zoid went by. Both the Liger Zero and Kouki just stared for a moment, before the red feline kicked an errant Cat in the head and took off after its savior. The Blade Liger only went a few more steps forward before the shield dropped and blades folded down, each lighting up with a pale golden light.

"Remember Kouki, keep lookin' for the entrance. I'll take these HelCats," Emily said with a small smirk, studying the cluster of four remaining panther Zoids in front of her. Minty rumbled, and then bared large saber fangs in a loud roar. Kouki and his Zero gave the two a last look, before the red Liger took off again, scuttling along the raised side edges of the canyon.

"Now then… Who wants to go first?"

C'mon kitties, show me whatcha got.

The HelCats hissed nervously, milling around in a little cluster in front of the Liger. Minty gave them a look, and then shrugged what little shoulders he had.

If you're not gonna come to me-

The Liger leapt forward with another burst of flames, closing the gap between them quickly. One of the Cats squeaked, and then was neatly cleaved in half by one of the glowing blades. Another small feline tried to jump away, and was smashed back down to the ground with Minty's heavy paw.

-I'll just have to come to you!

"Wow, Minty. You're being brave," Emily remarked, giving the forward screen a look. The Liger snorted, giving chase to another HelCat and dodging as it sprayed fire at him from two frontal guns. "Ego much?"

You expect me to be scared of HelCats?

"Mm. Good point."

The Liger's blades folded up onto its back as it smacked the HelCat with a front paw, uppercut style. The tiny black Zoid hit the ground and rolled a few times before it was blanketed in fire from the double impact cannon on Minty's chest, effectively CSFing it.

"Now, where's that last one…" The Republic pilot mused, looking around. But the canyon was empty. Or at least, it seemed to be. "Hmm. Must have camo equipped. Oh well, it's just one Cat. What harm can it do?" Emily shrugged, twitching the controls and directing the Blade Liger into a run up the canyon.

"Is it still following us?"

_Why wouldn't it be?!_

The Liger Zero EM was not a happy camper. No, no, no. Not with a giant flying reptile right on its tail. The tail cannon whipped out beam after beam at the Salamander, which swerved left and right to dodge but couldn't get too close to the canyon wall. That was the only advantage the Zero had right now, being tiny and able to hug the rock. The Sally could only come in as far as its wingspan would allow.

A smattering of pulse lasers suddenly rang out behind them, slamming into the Salamander's glowing wings and causing the Zoid to dip closer to the ground. Kouki saw his chance; the Liger springing off its rocky ledge with front paws blazing gold.

"Strike Laser Claw!"

The stolen Zoid shrieked and managed to roll over onto its side in the air, scraping the edge of the right wingtip along the ground and getting laser claws raked down its stomach. The Liger Zero EM hit the dirt hard and slid, while the Salamander flipped over and climbed back into the air again.

"Kouki, you loser." The Blade Liger came padding up then, back blade guns flipped onto its shoulders. Minty's tail swished back and forth in agitation, the Liger glancing nervously up at the sky. In the cockpit, Emily was not very happy. "How could you screw up such a perfect opportunity to take that thing down?"

"That pilot's reflexes are like, steroid-enhanced!" Kouki protested, waving one arm at the sky. "Did you see them flip that thing over? Not human, I tell you!"

"Psh, not human. The Terra Geist have nothing but old Zenebas supporters in it," Emily grumbled, giving the Liger pilot a 'You're Stupid' look. "I think the most nonhuman thing you'd find there is someone with a dash of Zoidian blood in them."

"Like you?"

"…no comment."

Sighing, the Republic pilot directed her gaze skyward once again, thinking. Minty sat down on his haunches, back guns still pointed at the sky. The Zero paced, and the Salamander seemed content to circle above, quite possibly trying to figure them out too.

"…right Kouki, I have a plan," Emily announced finally, glancing back down at her comm. screen. "A stupid and probably very dangerous plan, but one nonetheless."

"When _aren't_ your plans stupid and dangerous?" Kouki muttered, promptly shutting up as he received a tigerish growl from the other end.

"Shut your trap and just follow my lead, okay?" Emily asked, yanking up on the controls. Minty got to his paws and immediately began to sprint down the canyon, glancing up at the sky all the while. Spluttering, Kouki was quick to turn his Liger and follow, still thoroughly confused.

A couple seconds later, Minty built up speed and leapt at the canyon wall. Rebounding off the rock at an upwards angle, the Blade Liger was propelled across the canyon by his boosters to bounce off the rock again and head back the way he came, though still at an upwards angle. The Liger Zero EM wasn't too far behind, bounding up the walls a tad more easily than Minty, due to more leg flexibility. The Salamander continued to circle above, oblivious. At least, it seemed that way on the surface.

"Let's go, Minty!" Emily cheered, the Liger crouching temporarily on a rock cleft before springing upwards at the Salamander, boosters crisping in the back. The dark green flying Zoid shrieked and whipped its head down, a long stream of burning napalm suddenly flowing from the Salamander's beak down towards the Blade Liger. The result was fantastic, but still rather frightening.

"_**FRIGGIN' THING HAS A FLAMETHROWER?!"**_

Aka you're all soooo screwed :D

The shield flicked up in time to slam into the wall of fire, boosters dying on the Liger's back. Emily winced at the intense heat, felt even behind the shield, and some of Minty's nose began to melt. The Blade Liger roared in shock and fell back towards the ground.  
And then, folks, was when things got interesting. Most notably for Kouki, who was still jumping up behind the Liger. The Zero EM squeaked in fright as it launched itself into the air, on the verge of impacting with the Blade Liger, when Emily remembered exactly what it was there for.

"Kouki, dun move your Zoid!"

"Why??"

Minty roared as he came down on the Liger Zero EM's back, crouching fully as the blades came down and pointed forward behind the shield. There was a power surge as shield energy was transferred to the blades, and then the Blade Liger's front exploded in a swirling cone of golden energy.

**EAT THIS!**

Minty's angry shriek resonated through the air as the Liger leapt back up again, higher this time. The Salamander squawked in surprise as the swirling vortex ate through the fire like it was nothing, and then the Blade Liger slammed directly into its chest, knocking both Zoids over and sending them plummeting towards the ground.

_Minty!_

"Emily!"

The Liger Zero was pushed back down towards the ground, managing to bound off the rocky walls of the canyon and land safely in the dirt. Roaring in alarm, the red Zoid rocketed off down through the gore, following the flaming falling object that was the Salamander. Apparently the flying Zoid still had some control, as it was wobbling down through the air around the walls of the canyon. Eventually though, the Salamander crashed, disappearing around a corner and then impacting the ground with a spectacular explosion.

The Liger Zero rounded the corner and slid to a stop, silver claws digging into the ground to bring it to a halt. Roaring, the EM took a few steps towards the flaming wreckage and squinted into the smoke, looking for some sign of the Blade Liger.

"Always was saying she'd go out in a blaze of kamikaze glory," Kouki muttered, turning his Zoid away from the wreck.

"Yeah, but death and I have this little agreement right now…" The Zero froze and looked back, incredulous. Emerging from the smog with his armor streaked black and cockpit glass cracked was Minty, looking a little worse for the wear but still functioning.

"…in which I don't die until I'm good and ready!" Emily smirked, pushing a strand of hair out of her face and tightening the seatbelts. "So stop tryin' to write me off, wouldja?" The Blade Liger snarled, tossing his head.

Honestly thought some flying prehistoric junk heap would get the better of me?

"Y-y-you're alive?" Kouki stuttered, eyes wide. "B-but how?!"

"We jumped, dur. The shield cushioned our landing enough so poor Minty didn't explode. Left one hell of a crater, though," Emily shrugged, nonchalant. Blades flicking back into proper position on the back, Minty trotted off towards the edge of the gorge. "Now, c'mon, we're in the clearing where the entrance is supposed to be."

"What? We are?" Kouki asked, still very lost as his Liger turned to follow after the Blade Liger.

The two Ligers were prowling around the edges of the kidney bean-shaped space when the Liger Zero's tail flicked right through the rock. Growling, the Zoid froze and looked back, twitching the tail in and out of the 'rock'.

_Yanno, I think I just found the entrance._

"What the- Whoa. Hologram." Kouki blinked at the 'rock', which was now beginning to flicker every time his Liger's tail passed through it. "Good going."

_Over heeeeeeereeeee! I found the entraaaaaaance!_

"Shut up, friggin' ham."

_No wai dude :P_

While the Imperial half of the team bickered with each other, Minty padded across the ground towards the Zero. The Liger climbed up the slope and then stuck his paw into the hologram, giving a musing growl in the process.

This appears to be the spot… But a little easy to get into, wouldn't you say?

"Yep. We'll just have to proceed with caution, is all," Emily shrugged, flicking a switch and activating the exterior lights mounted in Minty's ears and around the cockpit. "C'mon Kouki, before I leave you for the reinforcements."

"I wouldn't mind that-"

"Other reinforcements, doofus."

Kouki squeaked and hurried his Zero up after the Blade Liger, in through the Terra Geist's front door.

_It's so dark and scary in here D:_

Somehow, I never figured them to be very big on interior lighting…

Minty padded first, his exterior lights doing a decent job of displaying the features of the tunnel that the two Zoids were walking through. The Liger Zero EM followed behind, green eyes two shining dots in the dim light. The poor Zero didn't have any extra lighting equipment outside the cockpit.

"So, how long d'ya think it'll take to get to the center of the place?" Kouki asked, squinting forward and seeing nothing really (other than Minty's rear).

"Dunno," Emily shrugged, consulting the radar. "It's a pretty big place, after all-"

Minty suddenly froze as a low hiss sounded through the hallway, grating and extra menacing.

"-and this could take longer than expected if we encounter guards," the female pilot continued after a moment, urging her Liger to start walking again. The Blade Liger whined, reverting back to coward mode. He didn't like scary hissing things in the darkness. Neither did the Liger Zero, which practically had its tail tucked between its legs.

The interior of the Terra Geist base was big.

Really, really, really big.

"Dammit. We've been here before."

"You sure?"

"Check the wall, stupid, that's where your Zero tried to climb up it…"

"Oh yeah, I remember now…"

The two feline Zoids milled around in the center of an intersection, tails lashing as they looked down four different hallways. Each Liger was developing an intense dislike of the place, coupled with a sudden tendency for claustrophobia. That's what you get for wandering around in the dark.

_I wanna go home…_

"Well we can't. We're stuck," Kouki grumbled, running a hand through his hair and sighing as the Zero pranced back and forth. "Stupid labyrinth…"

"I knew it was too easy to get in," Emily muttered, consulting the map again. As the Zoids had walked along, she'd charted their progress, and now a basic template of the maze had been slowly formed. Frowning, the girl ran her finger along the completed parts, studying former routes. "The center bit must be where the rest are hiding. All these hallways are parallel to one another… So if we just pick the right one, we should be able to get there quickly."

The hallways suddenly rattled and both felines jumped as a roar and a golden plasma stream streaked past.

We're not going anywhere until we finish these guys…

"Ah, sh-"

Minty bounded into the air as a shot raced underneath his belly, narrowly missing the Liger Zero's nose. On the other end, the Chimera Dragon shrilled a warning and released two missiles, which arced up into the air before smacking into the Blade Liger's shield.  
"Fuzors! They're not going easy on us," Kouki exclaimed, jumping as a second Dragon appeared behind them. Now surrounded, with two hallways open, the Blade Liger and Liger Zero circled and watched their enemies carefully.

_Now I really wanna go home D:_

"Stop complaining and concentrate!" The Imperial pilot exclaimed, yanking his Zoid back out of harm's way as one Chimera Dragon swept by, pincer claws mounted under the chin reaching out to swipe at the Zero's front legs. Yowling angrily, the feline drew back and swatted the Fuzor Zoid on the side of the face in a feeble attempt at a bitchslap. It didn't do much damage, but left a warped pawmark on the Dragon's cheek.

Over from the side, Emily tsk'd. "That was so lame… Now _this_ is how you do a bitchslap." Minty roared and slammed his front paw into the other Dragon's face, raking his claws down through a fiberglass optic and cheap metal. The Chimera shrieked and tried to draw back, but the Blade Liger's paw was firmly stuck in there. As it went to flip the lances on its head forward for some spearing action, Minty flipped down the blade guns and opened fire in a full barrage from everything.

Weirdo! Freak! Goat imitation! Diiiiiie!

"Minty…" Sweatdrop.

The Chimera Dragon gave a last shrill and then fell over, thoroughly CSF'd. The Blade Liger gave a satisfied snarl and wrenched his front paw out of the Dragon's wrecked face, before turning to look and see how the Liger Zero was doing.

_Go away goawaygoawaygoaway!_

"Stop being such a coward and shoot it!"

_I dun wanna! D:_

The sight of the Liger Zero running in circles with the Chimera Dragon right behind it almost made Minty facefault into the ground.  
"The hell is it doing?!" Emily yelled irately, wanting to get this over with before more efil Dragons showed up. Minty shrugged his shoulders as best he could, sweatdropping.

Um, now is really not the time to turn chicken…

"Don't tell _me_, tell _it_," Kouki grumbled, wrenching the controls around. The Liger whined and sprang into the air, just as the Chimera lunged under it. Seizing their chance, the Zero dove down with front paws glowing a furious gold, slicing into the Fuzor Zoid's back and sending parts flying in seconds.

"See, that wasn't so hard," the Rottiger pilot consoled his Liger Zero a minute later, patting the controls as the red feline whined and looked around the hallway for further enemies. Growling, Emily drummed her fingers on Minty's controls and gave Kouki a flat glare.

"You done mucking around?"

"I told you, I'm not the one-" The redhead was cut off by a squeak from his own Zero as the feline scampered after the Blade Liger, which was by now trotting down another hall.

_WAIT FOR MEEEEE! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE IN THE DAAAAAARK!_

"Are we sure that wimpy pile of parts isn't female?" Emily muttered, leaning back in her seat with a sigh. Minty grunted, tail flicking against the walls as he trotted along.

Truth be told… I don't know.

"Ya dun think it's a hermaphrodite like Tuxedo?!" Insert horror here.

Ah…maybe?

Sweatdrop.

"What're you guys talking about?" Kouki asked curiously. At least, he assumed it was Emily and Minty talking… Sometimes it was hard to tell when there was a one-sided conversation going on over the radio.

"We're discussing why your Liger screams like a schoolgirl," came the very blunt reply.

"My Liger does not scream like a schoolgirl!" The Blade Liger came to a halt and turned its head, giving the Zero's cockpit a very very flat look.

"Yeah. Sure it doesn't. And I pilot an Ultrasaurus," Emily said flatly, slipping in some sarcasm on the fly. Minty huffed and turned around, tail lashing against the wall as the Blade Liger jogged off again.

The Liger Zero stood there in the hallway for a minute, looking confused.

_I don't scream like that…do I?_

"Um… Well…" Kouki searched for some way to restore his Zoid's self-esteem. During that time, the Zero began to realize they were quickly getting left behind. And it was dark in there.

_omgMintydon'tleeeeeeeaaaveeemeeeeeeeeee!_

"Oh, forget it. You do scream like a girl," Kouki muttered, banging his head on the forward HUD screen as the Zero shrilled in terror and zoomed down the hallway.

"So. This it?"

Guess so.

_I dun wanna go in there… ;;_

"Suck it up, Suzy."

"The hell kinda name is Suzy?"

The two Ligers milled around outside a pair of gigantic closed doors, tails swishing anxiously as they paced. In the cockpits, Emily and Kouki were bickering over what to call his chicken Liger Zero. And at a time like that, too…

Um, can we just get on with it? Minty growled after a moment, reaching up with a paw to rake his claws down the doors with nasty shrill grating sounds. Both pilots yelped and clapped their hands over their ears in shock, before glaring at the Blade Liger.

"Minty!"

Sorry…

Grumbling, Emily consulted the doors, the shield power, and then looked over at the Liger Zero EM. "Kouki, I have good news and bad news…"

The red-haired pilot just gulped.

Roughly thirty seconds later the doors were slammed right off their hinges in a blaze of gold, the Zero falling through the opening with a panicked roar and flail. The Blade Liger stood there for a moment, staring at its ally, before casually trotting through after it.

_Owwww. My paws hurt now…_

"I tell you, name it Suzy."

"No way! That's a girly name…"

"Befitting a girly Liger." Snicker.

For Eve's sake, not this again, Minty groaned, giving his tail a swish before trotting further into the room.

Like the rest of the Terra Geist base, it was dark in there too. The edges of the area seemed to be hosting large stone blocks, while in the center rose up a spire with steps carved into the sides. The Blade Liger mrred uneasily and scratched at the floor with a paw, crouching low to the ground in a shadow.

The Liger Zero was still hyperventilating near the doors, whining and pacing around nervously.

_Eeeeeeh! It's so dark and scary and creepy and quiet and dusty in here-!_

"Just shut up, please," Kouki grumbled, going back to abusing the forward screen with his forehead.

"You'll get brain damage if you keep that up," Emily commented nonchalantly, consulting the radar. Minty flipped his beam guns forward to rest over his ears, head low as he peered into the darkness.

The Liger Zero was ever-so-slowly inching backwards towards the door when something pointy jabbed into its rear end. Yelping, the red Zoid shot forward and clawed its way up a block to safety, where it crouched shivering.

_Aaaagh! It's eating me! Get it away! Getitawaygetitaway!_

"What in the world is WRONG with you?!" Kouki spluttered, right before a hiss oozed out of the darkness and a Chimera Dragon floated up to stare eye to eye with the frightened Zero, green eyes leering. The Liger took one look and immediately began to flail at it with charged paws.

_Ghooooooooooost! Omggetitaway! D:_

"That's not a ghost, idiot!" The Rottiger pilot scolded, even as his Zoid continued to flail around in terror. The Chimera Dragon laughed, and then yelped as a claw scraped across its facial armor, cracking an optic and leaving a long melty scratch. Snarling, the Fuzor flipped its face lances forward and began to jab at the Zero with them. The red feline just squeaked in terror and took off across the block, leaping into a niche on a bigger rock and cowering there in a shaking ball of metal. Roaring, the Chimera hovered after it.

Down below, the Blade Liger was facing its own sort of quandary.

Did they run out of regular Zoids and get so desperate they had to use BLOX?

"Minty, let's just be glad it's not something worse…"

The brown Liger dove out of the way of the Lord Gale's spinning claws, retaliating with pulse shots from the rifles on its blades. The gargoyle Zoid screeched and fluttered off to the side, returning fire from its own cannons. Minty's shield flickered up to take the shots, a bright pink dome in the dark room.

"I'm guessing these are the current leaders of the Terra Geist, else they wouldn't be sending just two Zoids after us," Emily mused, watching the Gale's movements carefully.

"_You would be correct there, girlie," _bleeped the radar as the face of a graying middle-aged man appeared on the screen.

"Ho. Long time no see, Lezard," the blonde replied, unfazed. "You're looking as grimy as ever. Didn't take my advice with the hair dye, I see."

"_Of course not. What in the world would I need hair dye for?"_

"Oh, I dunno, maybe coloring your hair?" Growling, Emily glanced up over at the blocks, where the Chimera Dragon was busily poking at and getting swatted by the Liger Zero. "I take it Reika's over there…"

"_Yep, but she's not your opponent."_ The Lord Gale hissed through pointy teeth before tilting its angular head and roaring at the Blade Liger. Crouching on the floor, Minty flipped his blades down and forward and roared back. _"I am. So let's go!"_

"Be my guest, old man." The double shock cannon pumped out shell after shell at the Gale, which hovered up higher to the roof and out of range. The shells collided with the center spire, chipping out a sizeable crater but managing not to damage the structure's base too much. Snarling, Minty dashed forward under a blistering hail of laser fire, scooting around the corner of a large block and then running alongside the outside arena wall, somewhat out of sight of the Lord Gale.

Still stuck in the niche, Kouki sweated and tried to think while his Liger screamed like a little girl and flailed around. The Chimera Dragon was actually sitting on the end of the block just below them, looking rather amused and occasionally jabbing at the Zero with its face lances.

"_Hmm, this is easier than I thought it would be."_

"Reika!" Kouki exclaimed, looking over at the Lord Gale. "Then that means Lezard's over there. Who would've thought the leaders of the Terra Geist would come to fight us personally?"

"_We figured it would be interesting to verse against the fools tearing our forces apart,"_ Reika said, pushing back a strand of pale blonde hair. _"I didn't expect you to be such a coward, though."_

"It's not me! This stupid Liger is the coward!"

_I'm notta coward!_

In a random moment of bravery, the Liger bounced off the rock and fell down on the Chimera Dragon, squealing as it tried to impale him on the lances. Glowing paws flailing, the feline swatted away at the pointy tips, trying to balance and not get shishkebab'd.

Kouki just sweatdropped. Reika did too.

Roaring, the Lord Gale hurled laser after laser down at the blocks, trying to get chunks of the wall to rain down on the Blade Liger. Huddled in back, Minty whined as the area around him shook and tremored.

"Be strong, Minty," Emily consoled, patting the controls. "We'll get through this. It's just one Lord Gale, right?"

Well do something quick then, before I lose my nerves. 

Pause.

And my lunch! D:

Another pause.

"Minty, you don't have a stomach…"

Still!

Giving the controls a disturbed look, Emily went back to watching for falling debris from the wall. Around the corner, the Gale cackled insanely, still firing away.

"_Ahaha! This is easier than I thought it would be!"_

"Nothing in this world is ever easy, Lezard," the blonde reprimanded, now looking quite smug. "Three, two, one…"

The Lord Gale suddenly shrieked in pain as the laser guns in its scissor-claw hand exploded, engulfing the limb in a wash of fire. During this time, the Liger sprang around the corner, skittered onto a block, and then jumped into a niche on one of the bigger buildings. Clawing his way up, the Zoid made it to the 'roof' and then jumped at the Gale, blades swinging down to the sides and pointing forward for some spearing action.

Dienowplz!:D

"You are so weird. I should've brought Lady," Emily muttered, even as the two Zoids fell towards the ground. The force of Minty's tackle threw them down towards the center spire, the Lord Gale slamming into it back first and breaking the Liger's fall. Fumbling around on the ruined Zoid, Minty finally got himself free and jumped off towards the ground.

"Now then, I wonder how Kouki's doing," the Republic pilot mused, looking off in the directions where little explosions _seemed_ to be taking place. Sighing and pushing on the controls, she directed the Blade Liger to trot off that way, Minty's tail swishing behind him.

"I. Hate. My. Job. D:"

"_I love my job, don't you?"_ Reika grinned smugly from wherever she was. The Chimera Dragon flailed as it attempted to bring one of the beam guns to a good angle to fire on the Zero, but it was being decidedly difficult and clawing at whatever it could reach. Which, trying to balance on a pair of facial lances, wasn't much. Swerving to the side, the Liger managed to get out of the way of a trio of missiles newly released, squeaking.

_Somebody do something! It's gonna kill meh! ;;_

"DIIIIIIIE CREEPY LADY!"

Minty suddenly came crashing into the Dragon, spearing it in the side with a blade. The BLOX Fuzor shrilled unhappily, and then the Blade Liger sank his long fangs into a side cannon and ripped it off. Seeing this, the Liger Zero took the opportunity to start spamming the Chimera's face with its shock cannon. Screaming in pain, the head of the Zoid suddenly exploded as the rest of it fell apart, reforming into four other separate (but dead) Zoids.

"Phew. That's over," Kouki sighed, wiping sweat off his brow. He started sweating again, however, when the Blade Liger trotted over and shoved its face into the Zero's.

"You. You are nothing but a big fat _coward_, and a real pain in my rear," Emily spat, angry. "All I've done this mission is save your arse, and I'm _really_ gettin' tired of it!"

The Empire pilot whimpered, shrinking back in his seat. "I told you, I'm sorry! It's not me, it's this stupid thing that keeps wimping out!" The Liger Zero EM whined and ducked as Minty growled at it, long front fangs snapping together.

"Well, whoever's causing the problem, I suggest you shape up! Because next time, I am NOT going to come in and help!" Emily spat, wrenching the controls around. Minty turned with a lash of his long tail, and began to stalk out of the arena. "Now c'mon, we need to go meet up with the others."

Kouki blinked, and his Liger whimpered for a moment, before the red Zoid began to slowly inch out of the area after the brown Blade Liger.

_The hallways outside appeared to be clear. Heads looking cautiously at each intersection, the two Ligers fled down the empty corridors of the Terra Geist base, following a radio signal from the Republic Hovercargo and Imperial Whaleking._

"_We've infiltrated a hangar off the southwest hallway. Make your way back so we can escape." Came the message, and so off the two Zoids went._

_Racing out the last hallway, the Ligers tumbled over themselves into a small hangar where the Whaleking and Hovercargo were smushed together. Separating, each feline headed for their respective carrier when the ground shook, and the floor started to rise up, much to everyone's surprise._

"_What's going on here?!" Famous last words…_


End file.
